Sequoia National Park South Entrance Area

Dale Matson

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Hospital Rock

I have driven into Sequoia Park via the southern entrance (past the town of Three Rivers) a number of times. In the Spring, one is greeted with beautiful Yucca Plants lining both sides of the road called “The Generals’ Highway". And there is the roaring Marble Fork of the Kaweah River alongside. I have a photo on my wall of the Yuccas on a misty morning.

I was there yesterday during free time from a clergy retreat at St. Anthony’s Retreat Center. I was thinking because it was a relatively clear day, that I would climb Moro Rock for photographs. As it turned out, there was a construction blockage before Moro Rock.

I found a sweet spot prior to that near what is called “Hospital Rock”. Hospital Rock is a favorite of local climbers. By the time you get to that spot, you have already gotten glimpses of Mono Rock and Alta Peak. There is a parking and picnic area below Hospital Rock which was named by Hale Tharp an early explorer because of two accidents that needed   medical treatment. There is a large monolithic rock along the strenuous climb to Alta Peak (11,207’) named after Tharp. http://www.redwoodhikes.com/SequoiaNP/Alta.html

This area was inhabited by the Potwisha Native Americans. In fact, there were two other tribes in the area, the Mono and Yokut.

In addition to the view of the rock, there is a pictograph right across the Generals’ Highway from the parking area. On that same side of the highway, there is a trail down to the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River. At the trailhead, there is an informational sign and several grinding holes in a large rock used by the Native Americans.

There is a lovely viewing platform constructed of river rock which would be quite a sight in the Spring when the river is flowing at its height. There are about three other forks to the Kaweah River that all flow into Lake Kaweah.

Once again, our parks encircle and preserve both beauty and history. Even a short stop can provide quite an experience.  Photos taken with the Sony RX1R2.

 Moro Rock

  

Reflections On Photographing Eagles In Haines AK

Dale Matson

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Dale With Monopod

One of my favorite wildlife photography subjects is the eagle. I must say that much of my local winter wildlife experience is at Millerton Lake. There are many more eagles in the winter who have migrated to Millerton to avoid the harsh winters at Great Slave Lake in Canada. At Millerton Lake, knowing where the eagles congregate has been useful along with where their main food source, the coots, are available. Much of eagle photography for me has been learned by the photos…what works and what does not work. There are also camera and lens limitations and not having the right tool for the job is frustrating.

As someone who was primarily a landscape photographer, I found eagles to be much more challenging. Some things carry over like composing a shot but with eagles, decisions are time limited. I have learned to look for the drama and how a shot tells a story. I have learned to read the body language of eagles and generally know when they are about to fly.

All of this said, if you ever go to Haines AK when the Salmon are spawning, you will have an entirely new experience. There are roughly 4,000 eagles gathered along a short stretch of the Chilkot River. Generally, I had already learned that a perched eagle was less interesting than a flying eagle (BIF). In the morning when the eagles are more active, the light is low and a fast shutter speed makes for a high ISO photograph for most of the lenses in the 100-400mm range which are more affordable than a 400mm F 2.8 prime lens.

Being in a group of four experienced photographers led by a guide who is also a photographer helped me to learn so many things I was previously not aware of. I generally used the “spray and pray” method. The best photographers took less photographs and were careful to compose a shot first.

It was a rare occasion when birds in trees did not have intervening branches and the photographers avoided most of those shots even when the bird was close (less than 20’ away) They wanted the whole bird and they wanted to fill the frame without any part of the bird being out of the frame.

You could tell by the sound of the Nikons and Canons all fired at the same time that the money shot was always when an eagle was eating a salmon and other eagle would occasionally converge on that eagle. My Sony had silent shutter. In those cases, less magnification was better to keep the birds in the frame and taking my teleconverter off meant I also had additional light and could increase my speed to 1/1600. The birds in flight were more likely to be 1/2000. 1/650 was fine for a bird on the ground. I was able to get close enough to birds on the ground (10’) that the eagle to fill the frame.

Shutter speed can be limited by light but also by the speed of the SD card, Jpeg or Raw, using both cards simultaneously, frame rate and buffer size crop or full frame.

I shouldn’t have been surprised but overcast skies were better conditions for even light than sunny skies. This is not the same as ideal landscape ideal conditions.

I’m sure that most of the photographers in the several groups believe that their big lenses held up by big tripods with gimbals was the way to go. But most of the shots were close to very close. I had the Sony A7R3 with the 100-400mm GM lens. I used a monopod for longer shots with the 400 and 1.4 TC for birds on the ground. All the rest of my shots were hand held as I sat on a folding stool with my elbows resting on my knees. At age 74 It was much more comfortable than standing behind a tripod. When other photo opportunities came up, my gear was also the most portable.

Did I get the best photographs? No, but I leaned lots beginning with ordering a Sony A9 which is a better action camera than the high resolution A7R3. 

The Following Photos Were Taken By Sharon 

 Our Group [Back] Guide Carl Tom Sharon [Front] Dale Sharon My Wife